La chevauchée des outlaws

Steve Fallon , a drifter with a justified reputation as a gunman, is called upon for help by local ranchers when he enters a seemingly peaceful valley on the Mexico-Arizona border. A gang of marauding outlaws have determined to take over the area but they find opposition where they least expect it.

No sweaty, bearded visages, with flies crawling up the nose, whining electric guitars, and ten men getting mowed down by a lone gunmen - Savage Guns is a pre-Leone US-Paella western starring Richard Basehart and Alex Nicol, who play roles pitting them against each other. Basehart is the good guy, gunslinger who wants to hang up his guns. But in westerns that is an arduous task, not when his services are needed. Savage Guns is a bit of a slow-burn but it's intelligent with good performances, a rather serious tone, superb locations and some decent action. It's more in tune with classic westerns- the gunfighter helping the landowner (here there's a pacifist one) against a crooked rancher. Sort of like Shane. Seen this one a few times on BBC2 back in the 1980's.

Absolutely this film has nothing to do with the "spaghetti westerns", which are exactly the opposite of this film, that is, they are creative and with a background of irony that in this film you take too seriously. Don't turn Sergio Leone upside down in the tomb, this is a mediocre and very boring film, violence is gratuitous, poor photography, surely it cost little for the lack of actors that make the film not at all spectacular, feature that instead we expect from a western, especially if we love spaghetti westerns! Finally lacks absolutely rhythm, soundtrack not received, actors impomatati and not at all credible.

Acceptable Chorizo Western co-produced by Spain/England/USA with a British director and two Hollywood B-actors as Richard Basehart and Don Taylor and numerous Spanish secondaries . A good example of Latino western genre from Spain . In Sonora, 1870 in a lonesome valley next to the frontier of Arizona , there appears ex-Confederation officer named Summer (Don Taylor) , now a farmer married a beautiful Mexican (Paquito Rico) living in Rancho Summer and he tries to forget about the horrors of the war of independence on his farm. He is a peaceful man and has foresworn to violence . His intention is put to the test when a band of nasties ravages the ranch . There arrives a gunslinger (Richard Basehart) who being wounded and healed by the family ; later on he join forces with the farmer to take on a land baron (Jose Nieto) and his underling (Alex Nicol) .

Paella/British/US Western co-produced between Spain, England and doesn't follows the Sergio Leone wake , but it is proceeded in American models . It's an exciting western with breathtaking gunfight between the protagonist Richard Basehart against the heartless Alex Nicol and his nasty hoodlums , in addition a stirring ending fight between the three main protagonists , Basehart , Nicol and Taylor . This movie is a lot of fun to watch . It's an acceptable story with a touch of peculiarity , some great characters, and an amazing music score . The picture is a tale of justice and revenge , as a Pistolero seeks to help a family against a restless cattle baron . Richard Basehart is passable though miscast , he plays as a gunfighter who attempts to forget his past . Basehart's performance in the movie is a bit wooden for the role of such an interesting character , a Shane/Alan Ladd-alike , but the fantastic performance by Alex Nicol as the slimy, menacing outlaw make up for , here in his ordinary role as bandit and in a cruelly baddie character , he is terrific as a villain hoodlum giving a fine acting similarly his role in ¨The man of Laramie¨. There appears as secondary actors the habitual in Spanish/Italian Western such as Jose Nieto , Jose Luis Martin , Xan Das Bolas , Alfonso Rojas , Rafael Albaicin , Fernado Sanchez Polack , Rafael Vaquero , Jose Riesgo , Victor Israel and Fernando Rey in his customary character as an intellectual man .

The film packs violence , shootouts , high body-count and is quite entertaining , though sometimes results to be slow-moving . There are thrills ,romance , drama and action in the movie , guaranteeing some shoot'em up or stunts every few minutes . There is a very odd implementation of shots in the camera work during some particular scenes as the film approaches its climax , as in the final gunfight . The movie gets the Western ordinary issues , such as avengers antiheroes , violent facing off , exaggerated baddies and spectacular duels , among them . Well produced by Jimmy Sangster , Hammer's usual screenwriter , and Jose G . Maesso who produced several Western such as ¨The ugly ones , Minnesota Clay , Django , A train to Durango , Hellbenders¨ . Good production design creating an excellent scenario with luminous outdoors , dirty and rocky landscapes under a glimmer sun and cool settings by expert set designer Francisco Canet who designed several Westerns as Spanish as international ones . The musician Anton Garcia Abril composes a nice soundtrack and well conducted , this turns out to be one of the most memorable parts of the movie; as it's full of enjoyable sounds and haunting musical background . The soundtrack contributes tremendously to the atmosphere of the film, including an emotive leitmotif, the music score is perhaps the best part of this film . Striking cinematography by Alfredo Fraile , though is necessary a correct remastering . Outdoor sequences with barren and rocky exteriors , and including Mediterranean Sea filmed in Spanish places located in Aguilas , Alhamilla and desert of Almeria. The motion picture was professionally directed by Michael Carreras , though with no originality . He was a prestigious director, screenwriter and producer for Hammer Films . He Gradually introduced science-fiction into Hammer's output . Executive producer , Managing director and Chief Executive at Hammer Films until he forced to resign in 1979, when the company failed to secure finance and fell into receivership. Rating : 5,5 . The picture will appeal to Eurowestern buffs .

Tierra Brutal (Savage Guns) is directed by Michael Carreras and adapted to screenplay by Edmund Morris from the story The San Siado Killings written by Peter R. Newman. It stars Richard Basehart, Don Taylor, Alex Nicol, Fernando Rey, José Nieto, José Manuel Martín, Paquita Rico and Manolita Barroso. Music is by Anton Garcia Abril and cinematography by Alfredo Fraile.

It's 1870 in Sonora, Mexico, and wounded gunman drifter Steve Fallon (Basehart) is taken in by rancher Mike Summers (Taylor) and his wife, Franchea (Rico). While recuperating Steve learns that Mike is an ex- Confederate officer who has turned pacifist and refused to ever fire a gun again. That is something which is proving to be a problem as the Summers ranch is being threatened by land baron Ortega (Nieto) and his hired thugs. Steve sees a way he can thank the Summers family...

Hammer Studios regulars Carreras and Sangster formed the short lived Capricorn Productions to release this Paella Western filmed out of Almeria in Spain. It's influence on the trajectory of Euro Westerns is telling, even if as filmic entertainment it's pretty average fare.

Good guys wear black.

Film follows along the lines of Shane, with Basehart a weary old gunman finally finding what he says is the first home he has had since he was 15. Helps that he has a considerable love interest here as well in the shapely and beautiful form of Franchea's sister, Juana (Barroso). He can't believe his luck as much as we can't believe she would fall for a bloke old enough to be her dad!

It's a slow build of a film, sometimes too laborious for its own good, but the action when it comes is well staged (except for one fist-fight that is wholly unbelievable) and the characters are a roll call of types that would form the basis for many a Spaghetti Western that surfaced in the following years.

Interestingly the poster for it has the production as being in Totalscope and Eastmancolor, yet I didn't see this on the credits, in fact it said Metrocolor. Either way it's a nice colour production in the traditional Euro Western sense, with sun baked vistas framing the grizzled characters and the architecture, both natural and man built, gives off the requisite period vibe.

Abril's musical score is excellent, though it's not what we would come to know as a Spaghetti/Paella composition. But it really lifts certain sequences to better heights with stabs of brass mixing with military styled percussion. Cast are fine, with Basehart, enjoying playing a bad ass, and Nicol on over drive loose cannon head henchman duty, particularly enjoyable. 6/10

In 1961 Michael Carreras was looking to become an independent producer, breaking away from Hammer Films, purveyors of high-quality Gothic horror movies, which was a family business owned by James Carreras, his father. His idea, a new one, was to film a European western, using the desert area of Almeria, Spain, to fill in for the American southwest. Along with another Hammer regular, Jimmy Sangster, he signed American actors Richard Basehart, Don Taylor, and Alex Nicol, all of whom had acted for Hammer, to play the protagonists. The result, SAVAGE GUNS, is one of, if not the first, spaghetti westerns of the modern age. It has the look, the low sandy desert, adobe houses, the sneering bandidos, and the iconic mysterious gunslinger who finds himself between warring factions. The music is not quite there yet, very American in style, as is the action, but it has its moments. As a prototypical Euro-western, it's of interest to students of the genre, but probably too slow for typical western fans. Lots of talking. Capricorn, Carreras' and Sangster's company, didn't last long, and most likely because of the failure of this film, Hammer remained uninterested in adding westerns to their roster of Gothic Horror, Adventure, and Thriller movies.